Cruz: Obama using FAA to hurt Israel

'Economic boycott to force our ally to comply with demands'

Published: 07/24/2014 at 9:01 AM

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(POLITICO) The State Department and Sen. Ted Cruz sparred Wednesday over the Texas Republican’s accusation that the Obama administration was trying to sabotage Israel’s economy by barring flights into Tel Aviv.
Earlier on Wednesday, the FAA announced it had extended a ban on U.S.-based airlines flying into or out of Ben Gurion International Airport for another 24 hours.

The agency initially enacted the ban at noon Tuesday after a Hamas-fired rocket landed within a mile of the airport, citing the ongoing “potentially hazardous security situation created by the armed conflict between Israel and Gaza.”

Even before the FAA’s ban, the U.S. airlines that fly to Israel had canceled all flights in and out of Tel Aviv. Many foreign airlines continue to fly in and out of the country.